Enredo

Rev. Septimus Harding is much-loved in Barchester, perhaps the most beloved citizen in the county. In addition to the work at his church, which includes a superb choir, he is also Warden of a local hospital where a group of elderly gentlemen reside and receive a small stipend from the will of a benefactor who died some 400 years ago. Dr. John Bold has been tasked to look into this will to determine if its wishes are being correctly applied. He is particularly concerned the Rev. Harding is in receipt of an annual stipend of £800 per year - a considerable increase in the original amount owing to a vast increase in the value of the property - while its residents receive only 1s6d per day. The results of Bold's investigations figure prominently in a newspaper article denouncing the practices of the Church of England. Rev. Harding takes all of the criticism in his stride, even beginning to wonder if his remuneration might in fact be excessive. His daughter Eleanor however does not and any hope that John Bold may have had of marrying the girl have seemingly come to an end.—garykmcd

Set in the fictional county of Barsetshire and the town of Barchester, 1855, Reverend Septimus Harding is a respected and loved local figure, he hosts church masses, conducts the choir, practices the Christian teachings and serves as warden of an almshouse for elderly gentlemen, Hiram's Hospital. The almshouse was conceived by John Hiram, who died in 1434, Harding was granted the role of warden through an old friend, Bishop Grantly, the Bishop of Barchester. The Bishop's son is Archdeacon Theophilus Grantly, Harding's son-in-law, married to his eldest daughter, his second daughter is close to her childhood friend, John Bold, a local doctor.

John goes to a lawyer's office with information regarding his potential father-in-law, he suspects Harding of legal corruption, being overpaid and gaining his position in the almshouse through nepotism. The legal advisor, Mr Finney, prepares the necessary papers and suggests John speak to Harding about his income. John meets with Harding, the latter is considerate and takes any criticism plainly. He believes he makes £800 a year (Either £75,000 or £2,000,000 in 2020 terms), far beyond that which is owed in Hiram's will, the bedesmen that occupy the almshouse make one shilling and six pence a day. Supposedly some of all earnings are to be donated to fund the hospital.

Harding mentions the talk with the Grantly's, Theophilus is incensed, feeling this to be nothing more than an intrusion on business. There is legitimacy in John's concerns that they are not following Hiram's will to the letter, Theophilus hasn't read the will, the Bishop and Harding read the will a long time ago and can't quite remember the stipulations. Harding knows Hiram's death date and the leaving of money and land, the value of the property has increased over four centuries, as such Harding's income grew automatically. Theophilus worries that Bold's actions will ruin the Church of England, he suggests legal counsel from Sir Abraham Haphazard.

John's sister Mary is a campaigner for reformation in the church but is critical of the decision to target Harding, John says he isn't, he's targeting Harding's institution, he is doing so under the inquiry of a journalist friend, Tom Towers, whom will be visiting from London. Finney has prepared a petition to be given to the elderly bedesmen, the twelve residents are to sign their names to receive a higher income of £100/£9,000 - £308,000 a year, Abel Handy, the bedesman Finney is asking, expresses concern, the only fully literate resident is Mr Bunce, a loyal ally of Harding. Finney assures that eleven marks shall suffice.

Eleven signatures are signed, Mr Bunce finds the others signing the petition and calls them ungrateful for rejecting Harding's hospitality after all this time, along with the suggestion if the £100 is legally obliged, it doesn't mean they'd get it. Archdeacon Theophilus goes to the almshouse with Harding to address the concerns of the house and the petition, the Archdeacon states if the petition goes ahead there's a possibility the residents might receive less, should he, the Bishop and Harding choose to make changes, Harding refuses any changes that would make them worse off, convincing the bedesmen to drop the petition.

Tom Towers has arrived at Barchester where he pens his news piece to be printed in The Jupiter, it is a damning article, demonizing Harding and the Church of England as embezzlers, then he returns to London. Everyone in Barchester has read the article, Harding suggests to the Bishop and the Archdeacon that they could write a letter to the Jupiter denying the allegation, Archdeacon Theophilus advises against as the slightest mistake, grammatical or typographical, could be twisted into guilt. He suggests they read the response from Sir Abraham Haphazard, a collection of copies of the almshouse documents.

Harding's daughter Eleanor confronts John over the article, heartbroken that John has made her father the target of a crusade and denounces John. Theophilus has discovered that John and his associates have made a technical error, the original wording of the will names the Bishop of the time as warden of the almshouse, Harding is merely a paid servant, for a successful legal action to be taken the suit must be against the corporation, Chapter or the current Bishop Grantly, and the legal costs measure up to £15,000/£1,000,000 - £46,000,000.

Reverend Harding is safe, however he is displeased with the lack of morality, being a follower of the Christian values, he'd rather sacrifice his position and his earnings than be branded a thief. At John's house his sister Mary returns home having heard of Eleanor's visit, John begins to wonder if he was wrong to go after the hospital. At the same time Reverend Harding is at home with his daughter, he tells her that John may be right.